Readers, email your question to [email protected]. Your letters are edited solely for grammar, spelling, and length.
Dear Doctor Love,
When is it okay to tell someone they have bad breath? I have a good friend who eats so much garlic that talking with her is almost impossible because of her breath. I don’t want to hurt her feelings, but she works with the public and I know others smell it too.
/s/ The Nose Knows
Dear Knows,
It is easier than you think. Carry mints with you and urge her to accept one. Then gently tell her the truth, her love for garlic is noticeable on her breath. Quite likely she knows, and if she doesn’t, then she will be grateful to hear it from a good friend.
Dear Doctor Love
My boyfriend and I met at our work and we have been dating for about six months. Three weeks ago, he got another job with different hours and we don’t get to see each other very much anymore. When we went out last night he asked me if we could see other people. He promised that he doesn’t have anyone in mind, just that he meets a lot of people and it may happen and he doesn’t want to cheat on me. He also says it will help us to know if we belong together forever. I got really angry and we argued but I think he will break up with me if I say no. I love him and the thought of him with other girls is really upsetting. What should I do?
/s/ Faithful
Dear Faithful,
Take a calming breath and accept that your boyfriend has already taken the first step towards breaking up with you. He is just not ready to commit. He cares for you enough to be honest with you instead of going behind your back, but essentially, he has let you know he is interested in someone else. He may not have met that someone else, but he is telling you directly that when he does, he will be open to it. Your resistance is not going to change that fact.
It is understandable that you are hurt and angry. Nobody wants to think of their significant other being intimate with someone else. So, you must decide which is best for you—being one of many with a man you love or being on your own and getting over the hurt, so you can meet new people and start dating someone who wants to be with only you. Let him go, pick up your heart and look to the future. There is a whole world of possibilities that await you. Go find them.
